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Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Leg. Update: HB 259 & HB 555 Pass the House and more...

HB 259 (S.A.V.E. led bill to allow gray water in Montana) & and HB 555 (supported by S.A.V.E.) have both passed the Montana House with favorable margins! That and more below.
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Also, don't forget S.A.V.E.'s benefit with Jason DeShaw and the Third Wheel next March 8, S.A.V.E. Day at the Capitol Rotunda on March 9th, and our Plastics Recycling Week starting this Friday.

S.A.V.E. Legislative Update - Halfway through the session:

HB 259, a bill to allow gray water systems in Montana passed out of the House today. Learn more about gray water from previous post at the link above. The bill passed 3rd reading 85 to 14, with 1 excused vote. Representative Ward (R-Helena) co-sponsored HB 259 and expertly presented the practicality and reason for allowing gray water systems in Montana. Also known as Little John of Little John's Septic service, he is most responsible for the bills success and deserves much credit for bringing this conservation measure to Montana. Rep. Ward was excused for health issues and should be foremost in our thoughts while we await his recovery.

HB 555, to create a public education program for recycling and electronic waste disposal passed the House today with a 73 to 27 vote. HB 555 provides funds for D.E.Q. Pollution Prevention (proactive, effective part of D.E.Q. that coordinates state-wide recycling and markets) to run a public awareness campaign on electronic waste. D.E.Q. coordinated several electronics waste events last summer. This bill, HB 258 (below), and our new version of HB 607 (below) are vital to setting up the necessary awareness, incentive, and infrastructure to deal with electronic waste in Montana.

SB 449, setting fuel economy standards for state purchased vehicles, passed the Senate on a voice vote (one or two no votes recorded). The bill requires state vehicles to meet Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards (CAFE), providing the obvious exemptions for emergency and other vehicles. In the last biennium, the state motor pool went 1.33 million dollars over budget due to the increased cost of fuel and parts (due to fuel prices). This helps ensure the state will be prepared for potential spikes in fuel prices and institutionalizes common sense (cents) leadership. The bill also provides for increased carpooling by state vehicles. (on that note, Try Another Way State Employees, should be commended for their on going work doing just that)


*Revenue Bills (have more time before they must be transmitted):

SB 530, to exempt personal production and use of biodiesel for the states road tax, has been assigned to the Senate Taxation Committee. Biodiesel that meets ASTM D6751, the quality standard that biodiesel must meet to be sold in the state, is a proven fuel that performs well in diesel engines at any percentage. Backyard production has the potential to not meet these standards and give the fuel a bad name. By matching the federal exemption from road tax for biodiesel blends, personal use producers will not be deterred from reporting their use to the state. This will help us all make sure biodiesel is made safely and properly, as well as saving grass-roots conservation measures from extra paperwork.


HB 607, to create funds for recycling markets, innovations, and infrastructure from a tipping fee on solid waste, was intentionally tabled in House Natural Resources. S.A.V.E. is working with landfill operators, waste haulers, and other parties most affected by a tipping fee, to create a more palatable bill with another bill draft we had for recycling. The new bill will be presented soon and will create a special fund for recycling grants starting in 2008. A nickel (5 cents) for every ton (2,000lbs) of solid waste buried in Montana will contribute to the fund, coming our to around $65,000. The fund will be controlled by the Pollution Prevention section of Montana D.E.Q., a group that has a proven record of effectively finding innovative and market based solutions to meet the challenges of recycling solid waste in Montana. We see such a fund a vital to ensure effective, state-wide efforts on recycling, especially when dealing with the challenges of electronics waste recycling, helping community glass programs find markets, Household Hazardous Waste, and farm programs for recycling pesticide containers.

HB 258 remains tabled in House Taxation Committee. Given the extra busy schedule around transmittal for non-revenue bills, we have elected to wait a bit longer before bring the bill of for reconsideration. This gives us time to work on more outreach efforts to demonstrate the need to foster an incentive for the proper recycling of electronic waste. See earlier post for more information. Recent discussion of this bill includes "E-waste a growing problem (Helena IR)," a S.A.V.E. hosted forum at the Capitol, this week's Queen City News, and some stories on local news stations.

* A revenue bill affects state revenue, negatively or positively, have a transmittal date of the 60th legislative day. Non-revenue bills must be transmitted this week, by the 45th day.


- Savemobile.org

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Plastics Recycling Starts Friday / Benefit Next Thursday / Download Flyer Here

S.A.V.E. quarterly plastics drive will begin this Friday, March 2 and continue through March 9th. Click here to download a flyer for your office, click here to see our photo guide.

Click here to download a flyer for the S.A.V.E. benefit March 8th at Miller's.

- Savemobile.org

Sustainability Conference attended by S.A.V.E. Volunteers

Rocky Mountain Sustainability Summit

by

Charlie Speicher, Carroll Student and S.A.V.E. Board Member


Sustainable Development, as defined by the Bruntland commission in 1978, is the ability of the present generation to meet their needs without affecting the abilities of future generations to meet their needs. These “needs” consist of institutional, environmental, financial, and social amenities which every society depends upon. For example, a societies “needs” could qualify as healthy ecosystems, sound social programs, adequate jobs for people with adequate pay, and non-corrupt governments. The notion of sustainability is the keystone of any development, because any changes or alterations made by a society must be healthy and they must last indefinitely. Thus, the discourse concerning Sustainable Development must be present in any group or societies decision making processes.

Boulder, Colorado is a very different town than Helena, Montana. Despite its’ location and size, Boulder has a much larger University campus within its’ city limits. This University is home to roughly forty thousand students which seem to dominate the downtown area. The University of Colorado at Boulder is known for its’ Environmental Studies program and its’ general pro-environment stance taken on many social and political issues. The town of Boulder itself is known in the rocky mountain region for being a progressive community where liberal environmentalists can dwell and prosper in while being surrounded by likeminded people. Helena, Montana with its tiny Carroll College is quite the opposite.

The Sustainability Summit Kyle and I attended was held at Boulder’s University campus. We were greeted by a panel of speakers discussing the role that institutions of higher education should play in sustainability (note – there was never any mention, not one at all of “Sustainable Development”, more on this later). They concluded that, yes, institutions of higher education should play a role in sustainability. There was much colorful language and vague metaphors employed to solidify that point, but little else worth mention. Following the panel discussion, we participated in round table discussions on renewable energy and climate change.

In the afternoon of the first day of the summit, we attended three consecutive workshops. The first one was a lesson in the teaching of sustainability to people that know nothing about it. The predominant message I took from this workshop was how to connect the economy, the environment, and society and how to illustrate how interconnected those three notions are. The workshop provided “tips” on teaching, such as providing definitions of sustainability and ways to address tough environmental issues. The second workshop was an initiative to green college campuses. A Californian environmental research group has developed software which can be placed in buildings on college campuses which would display up to the minute information on how much energy the entire building, room by room, is using at any given time. This software, of course, costs between 10 and 200 thousand dollars.

The third workshop was by far the most applicable to SAVE’s interests. It was titled, “Sustainability and Self-Sufficiency: How to capitalize your community’s conservative values into sustainability resources.” This workshop was interactive, and everyone worked in small partnerships to outline the challenges that living in conservative communities can pose to sustainability. We also brainstormed on ways to mitigate those challenges and foster progressive results in the face of those challenges. This workshop was unlike the others because it didn’t adhere to the usual approach to environmentalism that we see in wealthy areas, where a common thought exists that the only thing an environmental issues needs is heaps of money thrown at it. The woman leading this workshop was from a conservative area in rural Idaho and seemed genuinely impressed with mine and Kyle’s ideas of environmentalism. We gave her a SAVE bumper sticker and told her all about our program. She told us to let her know if we need help finding money! The first day concluded with an informal social mixer where Kyle and I handed out SAVE bumper and cell phone stickers to pretty girls.

On to the second day. Most of the day consisted of a green products expo and a tour of the facilities at Boulder’s campus. The green products expo was pretty straightforward. Most of Boulder’s non-profits and green guilds were present to display their environmentally sound products. We saw new compact fluorescent light-bulbs, real-time software to display a building’s energy output, photovoltaic panels, miniature wind-turbines which can be placed on the side of a building, and recycling bins which had pre-labeled spaces for storing materials. Unless we received a grant, most of the products were, ahem, beyond SAVE’s budget. We also attended a workshop that day which discussed the benefits of sustainable food, such as purchasing locally grown organic products, and offering healthy foods on college campuses.

Overall, the conference was extremely informative, but unfortunately failed to address what I (and Kyle) feel to be the most critical issues facing sustainability not only in the United Stated but globally. The very title of the conference was misleading: “Rocky Mountain Sustainability Summit”. The fact that these two words, Sustainable and Development were never mentioned together was very disappointing. A conference on sustainability that doesn’t mention the global and pressing concept on sustainable development seems to me to be unsustainable, right? The United States is obviously light years ahead of the international community in terms of development, so I think it’s easy to forget about the actual development portion of sustainability when discussing environmental issues here. We are already “developed”, yet there are many unsustainable things happening here in the states, such as our dependence on foreign oil, our energy usage, our GHG emissions, etc. So wouldn’t it make sense to talk about re-development. To perhaps question the way we were developed in the first place? I have come to the conclusion that the only way any environmental progress will be made in the United States and elsewhere is not to buy millions of dollars worth of green products (which is itself an industry, and an unsustainable one at that) but to shift the way people think about the environment. There needs to be some serious philosophical undertakings to occur to make a positive change. So in a sense, the attitude and approach that many Americans take toward environmental issues must be developed, and that development must be sustainable. In the third world, the United Nations has placed an emergency like importance on sustainable development by adopting the millennium development goals which attempt to reduce carbon emissions in the third world by 50% by the year 2015.

This conference placed an enormous emphasis on the purchase of green products and the importance of fostering environmental stewardship, but little or no emphasis on the foundation of grassroots environmentalism and sustainable development, which Kyle and I feel to be the most important issue facing SAVE and Montana’s environmental issues. Though the subject matter of the conference fell short of mine and Kyle’s expectations, we certainly learned a lot about the state of environmentalism in the western United States. We realized the nature of the work that must happen here in Montana to make positive changes, and those changes will not come about by solely relying on grants to fund initiatives, but to be on the ground working hard and leading by example and to facilitate open-minded conversations with Montanan’s that generally wouldn’t care about environmental issues. SAVE seems to me to be beyond other local and regional non-profits in this regard. Most non-profiteers that we spoke to in Boulder were astonished that SAVE had actual work to do, rather than just operate as a think tank or public interest group.

Saturday, February 24, 2007

HB 259 (Gray Water) Passes the House! Other Legislative Updates

HB 259, a bill to allow gray water systems in Montana passed out of the house on 3rd reading today. Learn more about gray water from previous post on this blog and view the votes with the link to the bill.

HB 555, to create a public education program for recycling and electronic waste disposal passed 2nd reading in the house today with a 73 to 25 vote. The bill came out of House Natural Resources 15-1.

SB 449, setting fuel economy standards for state purchased vehicles, passed out of the Senate Transportation Committee 9-0 with amendments. The amendments require state vehicles to meet Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards (CAFE). The bill original looked at having state vehicles work on exceeding those standards. In the last biennium, the state motor pool went 1.33 million dollars over budget due to the increased cost of fuel and parts (due to fuel prices).


Revenue Bills (can be considered past transmittal deadline):
SB 530, to exempt personal production and use of biodiesel for the states road tax, has been assigned to the Senate Taxation Committee. Biodiesel that meets ASTM D6751, the quality standard that biodiesel must meet to be sold in the state,  is a proven fuel that performs well in diesel engines at any percentage. Back yard production has the potential to not meet these standards and give the spec fuel a bad name. By matching the federal exemption from road tax for biodiesel blends, personal use producers will not be deterred from reporting their use to the state. This will help us all make sure biodiesel is made safely and properly, as well as sparring grass-roots conservation measure extra paperwork.


HB 607, to create funds for recycling markets, innovations, and infrastructure from a tipping fee on solid waste, was intentionally tabled in House Natural Resources. S.A.V.E. is working with landfill operators, waste haulers, and other parties most affected by a tipping fee, to create a more palatable bill with another bill draft we had for recycling. The new bill will be presented soon and will create a special fund for recycling grants starting in 2008. A nickle (5 cents) for every ton (2,000lbs) of solid waste buried in Montana will contribute to the fund, coming our to around $65,000. The fund will be controlled by the Pollution Prevention section of Montana D.E.Q., a group that has a proven record of effectively finding innovative and market based solutions to meet the challenges of recycling solid waste in Montana. We see such a fund a vital to ensure effective, state-wide efforts on recycling, especially when dealing with the challenges of electronics waste recycling, helping community glass programs find markets, Household Hazardous Waste, and farm programs for recycling pesticide containers.

HB 258 remains tabled in House Taxation Committee. Given the extra busy schedule around transmittal for non-revenue bills, we have elected to wait a bit longer before bring the bill of for reconsideration. This gives us time to work on more outreach efforts to demonstrate the need to foster an incentive for the proper recycling of electronic waste. See earlier post for more information. Recent discussion of this bill includes "E-waste a growing problem (Helena IR), a S.A.V.E. hosted forum at the Capitol,  this weeks Queen City News, and some stories on local news stations.

- The S.A.V.E. Foundation, 501(c)(3) / Savemobile.org

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Thursday, February 22, 2007

S.A.V.E. Representative Attend Sustainability Conference in Boulder, Colorado


S.A.V.E. cell phone stickers and a bumper sticker are proudly displayed with new friends


Kyle Perkins and Charlie Speicher are both attending a conference on Sustainability in Higher Education by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education and other partners at the University of Colorado.

Kyle, pictured far right, is an occasional S.A.V.E. driver, coach of the Thunder Chickens climbing team, and is currently enrolled at Carroll College. Charlie (taking the photo) is a S.A.V.E. Board member, environmental studies major at Carroll College (Senior), and is currently doing an internship with S.A.V.E. looking at opportunities for increased sustainability on campus.

- Savemobile.org

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Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Effort to Untable HB 258 (E-waste Tax Credit)

Representative Reinhart has sent the following letter to the House Taxation Committee with the additional memo to address some of the concerns raised in executive action:

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Letter to House Taxation:

Dear Chairman Lake and Members of the House Taxation Committee:


On February 6, the committee voted to table HB 258, a bill to create a tax credit for electronic recycling. Based on that day's discussion, I feel that a correction to the fiscal note and further clarification regarding the unique challenges of electronic waste recycling warrant reconsideration of the bill.

The biggest concern to this bill centered on the high administrative cost. The fiscal note originally projected an FTE and over $40,000 a year to administer the separate form required by the bill. With amendments recommended by the Department of Revenue and passed by this committee, this form and these high costs vanish. The amendments standardized the tax credit to line item, requiring only a one-time form fee of $2,500.

In addition, the other fiscal effects may be overestimated. Fiscal note estimates are based on $25 an item cost. This cost does not consider that much of the electronics recycling taking place in Montana is done at community events. These events often have community support in advertising, administration, and partnerships that allow a reduced rate. "Erase your E-Waste" in Helena for example, allowed for the collection of an entire computer system (CPU, Monitor, and accessories) for $10 an item.

Tatooine Electronic Systems Inc, out of Billings, the largest operation in the state, is able to reduce its rate of $.30 a pound to $.20 per pound for such events. Last year they recycled 125,000 pounds of electronics, with 45,000 coming from collection events, or 36% of their business. Further, they estimate around 50% of their business comes from government agencies that would not be eligible for a tax credit. Next year, they hope to process 200,000-250,000lbs at a cost of $60,000-$65,000 dollars. Tatooine does not expect to see their operations or those from around the state reaching the $224,000 a year projected by the fiscal note.

Based on a revised fiscal note, I would like HB 258 to be reconsidered by the committee. I would also like to provide an additional memo providing information to clarify the other concerns of the committee.

Sincerely,


Representative Michele Reinhart

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Response to Electronic Waste Concerns
HB 258

1) E-Waste is not a very big concern. Even though, these fiscal numbers may seem small, but electronics recycling is a problem that Montana will deal with much more in the coming years. Already, six tons of electronic waste to the Billings landfill every day (Billings Solid Waste Division).

2) This tax credit will not solve the problem. E-Waste needs a solution to be put in place now. The next Legislature can review this program and expand it if necessary. A sunset provision on this tax credit will encourage electronic recyling until the 2009 Session.

3) Our current programs cover lead & plastics. This is true, current programs do accept some materials, but these programs do not accept electronics. The hazards of electronic recycling lie in separating out the materials to send them off to different recyclers. In addition, these programs have other incentives. Car batteries currently have a deposit (around $6) to encourage their disposal.

4) Tax Credit is not much of an incentive. This tax credit is the best alternative available to the state. This is a great example where a program requiring minimal state funding can have a large impact on this public health and safety concern.

5) Local Cities/Counties should deal with it. Local cities, counties, and landfills don't have the resources or funding to implement programs dealing with electronic waste. Developing a program in each county will be much more expensive in the long run.

6) There are no incentives for other products (e.g. refrigerators). We do have laws and guidelines; For example, the freon must be removed from refrigerators before it is put into a landfill (public safety & environmental concerns). We do not have similar guidelines on electronics.

7) People will not itemize tax. Some people will certainly claim the tax credit. Businesses will certainly benefit from the tax credit. The credit will provide awareness and incentive for individuals and business to responsibly recycle their waste.

8) If we grant this tax credit, other recycling programs will want public incentives. There are already established programs for other materials, like aluminum and glass. Only "hit and miss" programs exist for e-waste. Electronics will benefit the most from this public incentive. In addition, consumers must currently pay to get rid of electronics, which is not true for other materials.

9) Administrative cost is too high. With Department of Revenue amendments already adopted by House Taxation, the administrative cost diminishes to a one-time expense of $2,500.

Upcoming S.A.V.E. Events: Plastics Recycling / Concerts / Earth Day Helena 2007


Upcoming Events for your Calendar:

March 2-9: Week long Plastics Collection
- 24/7 (daytime hours preferred) at 1100 N Last Chance Gulch, i.e. the parking lot or field behind the former Guard Armory next to the YMCA
- Collection for type 1 clear, type 2 clear/natural color, and type 2 color plastics. No lids, please give quick rinse and separate. Click here for photo guide.
- Collection also includes print cartridges, cell phones, and rechargeable batteries (those found in cell phones, power tools, or computers only - no household such as AA, C, D). These items are take daily at the Real Food Store in Helena at their Customer service desk.

March 8: S.A.V.E. Benefit at Miller's Crossing
- Jason DeShaw at 7:30pm, The Third Wheels at 9pm
- Suggested donation of $5 to benefit S.A.V.E. efforts

March 9th: S.A.V.E. Day at the Capitol
- Recycling, Conservation, Alternative Energy and Student Projects Display at the Capitol Rotunda
- Lunchtime Biodiesel Montana Concert with Jason DeShaw
- Contact us at Recycle@Savemobile.org or 406-431-0815 to help or provide your student environmental project for display.

April 22nd: Earth Day Helena 2007
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This years Earth Day Helena 2007 will be hosted by S.A.V.E. at Carroll College at the main commons area. Click here to see photos from past celebrations. Contact us at Recycle@Savemobile.org or 406-431-0815 to help with planning, provide an exhibit, or be vendor.

April 28th: Trash-for-Trees recycling collection with Growing Friends
- S.A.V.E. will be partnering with Growing Friends of Helena to provide community recycling and benefit with their bi-annual Trash-for-Trees collection at the Northgate Plaza on Montana Avenue. Collection includes newspaper, magazines, tin/steel cans, aluminum cans, corrugated cardboard, glass, and plastics (see S.A.V.E. weeklong collections for details).

Fall 2007: Youth Leadership Conference:
- S.A.V.E. will be hosting a statewide Environmental Youth Leadership Conference as a gathering for young environmentalists in Helena. The conference will feature presentations, guest speakers, and more.

Volunteers Needed:

S.A.V.E.'s regular recycling route in now Tuesday and Friday. Any amount of time between 9:30a.m. and 5p.m. is helpful on those days. We also have various projects happening throughout the week varying from work to expand recycling in town, research and outreach for legislation, and more. (note: S.A.V.E. volunteer work counta towards community service hours)

- Savemobile.org

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Friday, February 16, 2007

Electronics Recyclers in Montana

Two Montana recycler of electronic waste are:

Tatooine Electronic Systems (Billings):

http://www.tatooineinc.com/ / 406.861.4920



P.A.L.M.E.R. Electronics (Missoula):

http://www.peteselec.com/recycling.html
/ 406.542.5465


Learn more from Montana's Department of Environmental Quality:

http://www.deq.mt.gov/Recycle/Electronics/index.asp

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

HB 258 & HB 259 featured on front page of Helena IR today!

Saturday, February 03, 2007

Legislative Update: Gray Water passes House Natural Resouces, new fact sheet

HB 259
, to allow Gray Water systems in Montana, has passed out of House Natural Resources 16-0. Amendments include expanding definitions of gray water to include collection, storage, and use, direction to where the legislation would be codified, and a look at systems that may already exist. The bill will be heard on the floor sometime early in the week of Feb 4 to Feb 10.

Click here to see the new page for our fact sheet that shows some basic examples of how gray water systems work (also not our first fact sheet in an earlier post). HB 259 enables a safe method of water conservation that is currently prohibited, but crosses party lines and is very likely to pass the House. If passed, it will be the rule making process provided for in the bill that will set the base standards to ensure safe and proper use of gray water in Montana. As with septic systems, county health officials follow these rules and add stronger rules to address local concerns.

- S.A.V.E. Legislative Crew

Legislative Update: E-Waste Recycling with HB 258



Electronic Waste Problem this Friday on the Helena walking mall! Photo from camera phone by Kyle Perkins that morning.

HB 258 was heard on Monday, January 22, before the House Taxation Committee. Executive action will be sometime early this week.

Click here for our most recent fact sheet.



Following is a recent letter to the editor:

(Published in The Queen City News Link: http://www.queencitynews.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=6563)

To the Editor

Computers can be frustrating sometimes. Advances in technology make computers obsolete faster and faster. This results in the current situation where three-quarters of all computer equipment ever manufactured is sitting in basements, garages and storage units throughout the country.

Electronics also present a disposal problem due to the number of hazardous materials they contain. The average computer monitor contains 4 to 8 pounds of lead, while the circuitry inside is comprised of hundreds of chemicals and heavy metals. To ensure proper disposal and reuse of these materials is costly. To get rid of a computer, monitor, and printer in a responsible manner, a person can expect to pay $30-$50. People are not eager to pay to get rid of their electronics–especially since a landfill offers free, but irresponsible, disposal.

In order to encourage people to recycle their electronics, ensuring that materials are properly handled and reused whenever possible, the S.A.V.E. Foundation is supporting House Bill 258 to create a state tax credit for electronic recycling. For example, if you or your business spent $30 on electronic recycling, you would receive a $30 tax credit for that year. HB 258 is an excellent way to encourage citizens to make a responsible choice with their old electronics.

For more information on HB 258 and how to contact your legislator, visit www.Savemobile.org or call 431-0815.

Tyler Evilsizer
The S.A.V.E Foundation
P.O. Box 1481
Helena